2013 Knife Making Progress

[Sticks]

Steve,

I hear ya. I ruined a slip joint blade last night. I think you get tired and don't notice it. One touch with the grinder in the wrong spot and... Do you have a buffer? I bought one on sale at Menards for a few bucks. If so, you could buff some of that nick out. It would still be a slight depression but sanding that out completely would be a bear! And as I say about my imperfections, that's what makes it a hand made knife. You want perfect go buy an Imperial!

Jay

 

[Steven Long]

Ouch! It sucks getting that far just to have to throw it out. I do have a cheapo Craftsman buffer. I think I might sand a little to raise the impression up to the spine more and then buff to see what it looks like.

 

[backtines]

Hey Steve , I think you did a great job anyway .. It can only get better from here !

 

[Steven Long]

Thanks Mikey! I sure hope so. If it wasn't for this forum and all of you guys, I would still be staring at a blank piece of steel wondering, "how do I make a knife out of this?"

 

[Bowman]

Very nicely done. It looks like you're getting well setup. I think you've inspired me to make a few sanding implements. I'm working without a grinder so anything to help with hand sanding would be good.

 

[Steven Long]

Thanks Bowman!

I was sanding on a piece of 1"x2" stuck in the vise with no support for the tip and the thing would bounce around like crazy. My plunge lines and flats would get washed out and the tip would end up looking the worst. I did some searching and found a few people saying that, to sand successfully, you needed to support the tip, work on a very rigid surface, and use sand paper like it was free. I copied their set-up for the most part and have been pretty successful with it.

Good luck and be sure to post some photos of what you make. I am very interested to see what you can come up with.

 

[Steven Long]

Been pretty busy in the shop the past few days.

Got the second knife back from heat treat, cleaned it up and attached the scales. I will post the finished pictures tomorrow night...

Here is the one I was trying to save out of the trash pile. Looks like it will turn out alright. Taking it to heat treat in the morning...

Thanks for looking!

 

[Lagrange]

Looks like you have it going in the right direction Steve. I wish my first knife turned out as nice as yours. I am sure we are going to see some beauties coming from you in the future.

 

[Steven Long]

Thanks Eric. If my future ones turn out half as nice as yours, I will be a happy man.

 

[Taz575]

I have an idea of how to fix that boo boo!! Do you have a Dremel tool? Get a Carbide burr and do some Dremel File Work or Jimping for traction. Little half circle dips in the back/side of the blade in that area for traction

 

[Steven Long]

That could be a good idea. I might try that.

Thanks!

 

[Steven Long]

Knife #2

Finished up #2 today. I'm pretty happy about it.

Here it is getting hand sanded and starting to get close to where I want it...

There were way less mistakes on this one, but there are still about a hundred...

I was having fun taking pictures, can you tell? :biggrin:

Thank you for looking!

 

[Steven Long]

Today started out good. I got off work around 2pm and went out in the shop to start grinding on a knife. When I first started out, I was recognizing ways to correct mistakes I had made on the previous knives; certain ways to hold the blade, different pressure in different areas depending on what needed to be taken off, slowing down, etc. The weird thing was that I am usually more comfortable holding the tang in my right hand, today it felt awkward and holding the tang in my left hand felt more natural. It messed with me I guess because I kept making mistake after mistake when holding in my right hand. It got so bad that I had to put it down and take a break. Not long after getting back at it, I made a mistake that might be hard to repair. While trying to clean up and even the plunges, I hit the ricasso on the belt and made a doozie. I am sure I can repair it and move on but it rattled me. I also took the grind a little too high...

I am thinking of shortening the width and then trying to take the plunge back a little...

This side was going good...

So I put it down for the night and started on a new one. Cleaned up the edges and sanded flat on both sides. Going to lay it out with the way I want it to look tonight and grind it in the morning. Also thinking about shortening the width of the blade a little. Actually, not even sure that I like it... It's just one of those days...

Hopefully tomorrow will bring better results. I get to pick up the last one from heat treat. I might just need a day off in the near future. :3:

 

[Steven Long]

Well today was much better. I was able to fix my screw up from last night and complete two more for heat treat. It was a good thing I built the sanding area because that is where I have spent most of my time during building a knife.

Fixing the mistake was as easy as putting the blade in the file guide and using a round file to establish a new plunge cut. Then hand sanded to smooth everything out. Not sure why my brain wasn't working yesterday.

Almost all cleaned up on one side...

Finished on one side. It is amazing what sandpaper and elbow grease will accomplish...

Next was the other side which was a doozie. I ended up using 4 1/2 sheets of 220 grit paper trying to fix this thing on both sides...

My hands were a little sore and my ADD made me work on another project. I decided I would go back to the way I was doing it before and cut the plunge by using the file guide and round file before even touching the grinder. I seem to have better results this way...

Ready to grind in the initial grind...

Ready to start grinding in the bevels...

Picked up #3 from heat treat. This is the one I saved from the "pile"...

After about an hour on the grinder working on #5, I was happy with this and went over to sanding back on #4...

I really want a new grinder:les:

A few spots giving me a headache...

The other side was a lot easier. Here it is all done ready to go to heat treat (#4)..

Here is #5 ready to go also...

Together...

I will be starting a batch of 4 knives tomorrow. :biggrin:

I'm obsessed!

 

[Steven Long]

Didn't get as much time in the shop as I wanted today, but better than nothing. I started working on a batch of 5 knives. I am hoping to sell these to pay for more material. I am almost out of belts, steel, epoxy and handle materials. It's a bad combination to be out of at once. The last untouched steel I had was 1/8" 1095 so I decided to make 5 smaller knives that are built with the long distance backpacker in mind. I am thinking of adding a small slot in the back of the sheaths for a small pocket Arkansas stone and also a small firesteel on the side. I am probably getting ahead of myself because they still need to be finished and they will also be my first sheaths. I hope I can pull this off because I'm not sure how else to keep my addiction going.

My Mom wanted a paring knife so I drew this design up and she said she loved it (of course she did, that's why I need your opinions). Went ahead and ordered some CPM 154CM in .113 thickness. I thought the design would make a great long distance hiker knife but in a thicker steel. So, these were born. I am going to try and get these as light as possible.

OAL: 7 3/4"
Blade: 3 1/4"
1/8" 1095

I need some honest opinions on the design. The more I look at all of my designs, the worse they look. Not sure if any of you have this problem. I start to doubt my initial intentions for drawing them in the first place.

Thanks for looking!

 

[Lagrange]

I dont see anything wrong with the design Steve. I have the same problem sometimes. I get this idea and then transfer it to a piece of steel...then while it's sitting there on my bench...the longer I look at it the more I think it should have been different.
One way around it is to draw out your designs on paper and then play with different aspects of your design. You may have already been doing this based on some of the blade designs I saw you had. But I think this is the cheapest way to do it.
I normally lay my designs out on mild steel first. That gives me a chance to see something solid and to hold on to and give me some perspective. Then I have a good solid blade model to use to scribe out blades with.
One more thing... I use a guide...like your file guide, to cut in my bevels. Mine is home made, but there are some good ones that I hear are wicked nice. I am told that Bruce Bump makes an excellent one with carbide a surface that is impervious to even a nuclear attack. I plan on getting one someday. It might help using one to get your plunges the way you want them. It works for me.
Just some thoughts....
But you are doing real good. I also want to thank you for sharing your work. It helps me believe it or not.

 

[ricky_arthur]

They are looking good steve, you are getting it figured out. Now do something different like a hidden tang knife to learn other aspects.

 

[Rudy Joly]

Looks like a good start Steven.
Since you have 5 of the same design, it might be a good opportunity to change up your grinds on a couple. Maybe a couple hollow grinds if you have the equipment or bolsters. Before cutting my blanks, I draw the finished knife on paper . This gives you a map to follow because I usually forget from one knife to the other what exactly I had in mind for it. Just trace those blanks and try something different on each one before actually grinding.

Rudy

 

[Steven Long]

I dont see anything wrong with the design Steve. I have the same problem sometimes. I get this idea and then transfer it to a piece of steel...then while it's sitting there on my bench...the longer I look at it the more I think it should have been different.
One way around it is to draw out your designs on paper and then play with different aspects of your design. You may have already been doing this based on some of the blade designs I saw you had. But I think this is the cheapest way to do it.
I normally lay my designs out on mild steel first. That gives me a chance to see something solid and to hold on to and give me some perspective. Then I have a good solid blade model to use to scribe out blades with.
One more thing... I use a guide...like your file guide, to cut in my bevels. Mine is home made, but there are some good ones that I hear are wicked nice. I am told that Bruce Bump makes an excellent one with carbide a surface that is impervious to even a nuclear attack. I plan on getting one someday. It might help using one to get your plunges the way you want them. It works for me.
Just some thoughts....
But you are doing real good. I also want to thank you for sharing your work. It helps me believe it or not.

Eric,
Thanks for the tips. I have been doing it similar but seem to always jump the gun and not draw enough before cutting. I get too excited.

I have tried using the file guide approach but unfortunately, I put a ceramic plate on my platen and it is not exactly in the middle. So the plunge cuts get ground in uneven. I did however order 2 more platens from Craftsman, because they were only $10.00 a piece, and plan on using a thick piece of steel on one and graphite paper on the other. This will hopefully make it easier. That is my biggest problem right now, the plunge cuts. I can't seem to get them even.

You are welcome. I'm glad to see someone else getting something out of it. This thread has helped me more since I started it than anything else in the past 8 months i have been learning.

They are looking good steve, you are getting it figured out. Now do something different like a hidden tang knife to learn other aspects.

Ricky,
Thanks man! I plan on trying some new things but the thought of a hidden tang makes me nervous. Maybe once I can be consistent making the style I am making now, I will give it a try.

Looks like a good start Steven.
Since you have 5 of the same design, it might be a good opportunity to change up your grinds on a couple. Maybe a couple hollow grinds if you have the equipment or bolsters. Before cutting my blanks, I draw the finished knife on paper . This gives you a map to follow because I usually forget from one knife to the other what exactly I had in mind for it. Just trace those blanks and try something different on each one before actually grinding.

Rudy

Thanks Rudy,
Unfortunately I am only able to do flat grinding right now. My back is killing me so this would be a good time to spend the rest of the day drawing and see what I can come up with before taking them to the grinder.

 

[Steven Long]

I am almost finished with one of the five. I need to even up the plunge cuts and sand a little more. I feel a little more comfortable on the grinder everyday. I will be in the shop all day tomorrow so I should be able to get a lot done. The sad thing is that I will most likely be out of 120 and 220 belts tomorrow also. They go way too fast on this grinder. You guys that use 2x72 belts, how many 120 grit belts do you go through per knife on average? I know it's longer than the 2x42 because of more surface area but mine seem to go dull before I can get halfway through a 3/16" thick blade.

Anyway, here was my progress in the shop today...

As always, thanks for looking!